The Sunday Read: ‘Can Humans Endure the Psychological Torment of Mars?’

What happened when the country’s best known weight-loss company realized that people no longer wanted to talk about losing weight. Guest: Taffy Brodesser-Akner, who wrote an article for The New York Times Magazine about evolving American culture through the saga of Weight Watchers. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

11 Aug 201720min

In 1999, President Bill Clinton sent an envoy to North Korea for a rare negotiation aimed at stopping the country’s nuclear development. That was the moment, the envoy says, when everything could have gone differently. Guest: William Perry, the secretary of defense from 1994 to 1997, who went on that diplomatic mission. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

10 Aug 201722min

From his golf course in New Jersey on Tuesday, President Trump threatened North Korea “fire and fury” and warned that the country “best not make any more threats to the United States.” How should we interpret the latest escalation in tensions with Pyongyang? Plus: Why American law may block the biggest medical breakthrough in decades. Guests: Peter Baker, chief White House correspondent for The Times; Carl Zimmer, who writes about biology and genetics. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

9 Aug 201718min

Why Vice President Mike Pence is denouncing New York Times reporting about his political future and publicly stating his allegiance to the president. And the stolen childhoods of young Syrians who endured the traumas of civil war and Islamic State rule. Guests: Glenn Thrush, a White House correspondent; Somini Sengupta, a foreign correspondent; Dr. Rajia Sharhan, who treats the displaced children of Syria. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

8 Aug 201721min

As a teenager, Noura Jackson was convicted of killing her mother, and then spent nine years in prison. But from the start, prosecutors possessed a document that could have set her free. Why the omission of evidence, despite its life-altering consequences, is hard to detect — and rarely punished. Guest: Emily Bazelon, a writer for The New York Times Magazine who has been following Ms. Jackson’s case. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

7 Aug 201724min

In 2013, Abigail Fisher sued the University of Texas, saying she had been discriminated against for being white. Now, some students are suing Harvard, saying they were discriminated against for being Asian-American. Both lawsuits can be traced to the same man. But this time, the White House is taking up his cause. Guests: Michael Wang, one of dozens of Asian-American students who have filed a complaint against Harvard; Anemona Hartocollis, who is reporting on the lawsuit; Edward Blum, the man behind the action; Nikole Hannah-Jones, who writes about race and education for The New York Times Magazine. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

4 Aug 201722min

President Trump is threatening to undermine the Affordable Care Act, President Barack Obama’s signature legislation. But what if the real threat to Obamacare was put there by Mr. Obama himself — and could bring the whole thing down? Guests: Carl Hulse, chief Washington correspondent; Ken Janda, the chief executive of an insurance provider in Houston. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

3 Aug 201719min

An expansion of power. A rewriting of the Constitution. Is democracy coming to an end in Venezuela? Plus: What does it mean for a retired four-star general to enter a chaotic White House? Guests: Nicholas Casey, our Andes bureau chief; Michael D. Shear, White House correspondent. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

2 Aug 201723min